Víctor Valdés: "Casillas has my full support"

The Barcelona goalkeeper Víctor Valdés has leapt to the defence of his opposite number Iker Casillas, whom he wants to see back in the Real Madrid team. "I was surprised when I heard the news [about Casillas being dropped] in the dressing room in Valladolid. I don't know what the reasons were, but he has my full support. I hope he's soon back between the sticks, which is where I like to see him," the Catalan shotstopper said.

Valdés knows from personal experience that goalies come in for more stick than praise. "People have always doubted me – it's the same old story. The only people qualified to talk about keeping goal for Barça are the ones who have been there and done it. I've been in the team for several seasons now and I've seen it all before", he said. "I'm not saying I don't have the fans' support, I just mean goalkeepers are an easy target for criticism. I'm not shocked by some of the comments I hear", the Barça no. 1 said.

Valdés is unsure whether he will end his career at the Camp Nou. "I'm not worried about my future right now. Retire here? Time will tell. I'm not ruling out sampling a different style of football and culture", he added.

Finally, the Barça keeper is hoping to shake off the plantar fasciitis (inflammation of the heel) that is troubling him to face Espanyol on Sunday. "I was in a lot of pain at the end of the Valladolid match. I'm feeling similarly at the moment, but it isn't the sort of pain that gets worse: it's there in the background, but it shouldn't stop me playing", Valdés explained.